What are the milestones of child development?
Although every child is unique and the parental experience is immensely different for each one, the turning points in a child’s development help us determine what behaviors we should look out for as they grow up.
The milestones of development are the skills a child acquires in a predictable order, reflecting the development of the neurological system and its interaction with the environment.
First 6 Months
Physical Development: They can hold objects for a short time and can even reach for objects at short distances.
Cognitive Development: They try to imitate the facial expressions of adults both simultaneously and after the expression is gone.
Language Development: They can alter their tone of voice by raising and lowering it.
Social and Emotional Development: They like to play with others, and can show their discontent when they are interrupted.
7–12 Months
Physical Development: Can sit, crawl without assistance.
Cognitive Development: The name of an object can be matched to its picture.
Language Development: Towards the end of this period, they learn to point with their hand or gravitate towards what they wish to express.
Social and Emotional Development: Feelings like anger and fear are experienced more intensely.
19–24 Months
Physical Development: They can walk by themselves.
Cognitive Development: They can categorize objects according to their colors or shapes.
Language Development: They can use two words side by side or combine a word and a gesture.
Social and Emotional Development: They begin to cope better with the absence of their caregiver, separation distress decreases.
2 Age
Physical Development: The rate of increase in weight and height slows down compared to infancy.
Cognitive Development: Recognition memory improves.
Language Development: They can follow simple instructions.
Social and Emotional Development: They begin to defy their caregivers as their need for autonomy increases.
Here is a song and a movie that handles the topic of child development:
The Beginning of Life, 2016
This Netflix documentary series explores how children are affected by their environment by using innovations in technology and neuroscience. Each episode examines different subjects delving into issues such as childhood development, stages of learning, and the crucial points of adult-child interactions.
Neutral Milk Hotel — King of Carrot Flowers Part One
The seminal indie album of the 90s, Neutral Milk Hotel’s In The Aeroplane Over The Sea conceptually narrates lead singer Jeff Magnum’s discovery of The Diary of Anne Frank, which chronicles the hardships of hiding from Nazis as a child in an Amsterdam attic. The opening song, King of Carrot Flowers Pt.1, discusses Anne Frank’s self-discovery as a child, her exploration of the world, her relationship with her parents, and the games she plays. Magnum creates an emotional affinity to Anne Frank by pondering on her notes and singing about his childhood hardships, sometimes writing from the perspective of himself as a little kid or even as a fetus.
Source: Berk, L. E. (2005). Infants and children: Prenatal through middle childhood. Pearson Education: New Zealand.
